Page 42 of Waste
Pandora held Drew’s gaze. “I had little choice in the matter. It was not of my free will. And should I be given a second chance, I would do exactly the same.”
Drew bit the inside of his cheek. “Who forced you?”
“I cannot say. There would be repercussions if I were to speak a name. More is at stake than you realise. In the end, the truth is bound to emerge, and actions will count,” Pandora replied.
“Answer me this, you’re not human any longer, are you?” Drew stated.
Pandora ducked her eyes before meeting his once more. “No. I’m as immortal as all of you, and again, it wasn’t by choice.”
“Who is the man you protect?”
Pandora shook her head and averted her gaze. Drew knew she wouldn’t say anything else.
“I know you walked alone for thousands of years. We abandoned you as punishment. We hurt you badly, Pandora, and I wish I could take back some of the things I said, even though you didn’t hear them.”
Pandora smiled sadly. “I heard, Drew. Every time my name was mentioned, I heard the comments. Even now, when you all worry about me, I hear.”
Drew stiffened. “What?”
“Drew, I don’t want to cause trouble. Just let me live in peace and guide events where I can,” Pandora almost begged.
Drew lunged forward and knelt at her feet, clasping her hands. “Are you telling me you’ve heard every negative thing that people have spoken about you?”
“Yes,” Pandora whispered.
“Oh God, Pandora, I’m so sorry,” Drew rasped out.
He was horrified. He’d said some awful things when he’d first been changed. And hadn’t held his tongue over the years either. And Pandora knew each scornful, hate-filled remark he’d made.
“I deserved no better at the beginning. I did betray you all. Drew, you only had the knowledge you possessed at the time. However, the future is constantly evolving and remains fluid. Which means many other foregone conclusions are no longer set in stone. Tight grips weaken, and the oppressed grow stronger. Faith, Drew, was never a Sin.”
“No, Faith wasn’t.”
“People think the Jar held the Evils of Humankind. What nobody realises is that the Evils are Sins. They are the adverse actions humans have committed against each other. Sins and the Evils are the same thing. A Sin is always committed with evil or negative intent.”
“What is Faith then?”
“A Blessing. That’s what God left humans with when he removed the Sins from them. Faith, love, kindness, generosity, respect, all those are Blessings. But Blessings can also corrupt.”
“We held the Blessings,” Drew said, furrowing his brow.
“Yes, but we didn’t recognise them as that. God saw them in us and wanted humans to have the traits we had. So, he shared them with humans. It was the greatest gift and the cruellest too.”
“How so?”
“For example, blind Faith. How many religious wars has it caused? How many deaths and cruelties are committed by zealots? And Kindness. Take the prison war camps when the prisoners were freed, starving and weak. Soldiers fed them, and people died because their stomachs couldn’t handle the rich food. The Sins and Blessings balance themselves out. Each Blessing and Sin has its own negatives and positives.”
“I don’t see a benefit in waste,” Drew said, shaking his head.
“No? A man who cooks too much at a restaurant creates waste but donates the excess to a foodbank. He created waste but didn’t dismiss it. He turned it into positive action. For instance, lust need not always involve sex. A person could lust for power and use that to improve the world around him.”
“Elder abuse?” Drew challenged, and Pandora smiled wryly.
“Some Sins don’t have a beneficial side. Similarly, certain Blessings hold no negatives.”
“You’ve given me much to think about,” Drew admitted.
“Maybe it will help you a little when dealing with Shelley.”
